A commonly used technique for inserting a catheter into a blood vessel, referred to as the Seldinger technique, involves inserting a hollow needle to puncture the blood vessel, inserting a thin guidewire into the vessel through the hollow needle, removing the needle, guiding the catheter over the guidewire into the blood vessel and, finally, removing the guidewire. Guidewires may also be used in cardiovascular surgery procedures. For example, a surgeon may make an incision in a patient's leg. The surgeon may then insert a guidewire into the incision and feed the guidewire through an artery or vein until the guidewire reaches the desired location. In one example of a cardiovascular operation where guidewires may be used, a stent may be attached to the guidewire. Once the guidewire reaches the desired location, the stent may be expanded, for example, by injecting air into the stent. Another example of medical guidewire applications is in the field of biopsies. One end of the guidewire may have a jaw or a clamp. The jaw or clamp may be used to remove a sample of a tissue from a patient.
Existing dispensers suffer from problems arising during shipment or storage. These devices typically are assembled from multiple components, including a coiled tube. Plastic clips are usually provided to keep the tubes from uncoiling. Due to the compressive force on the coiled tube, the components of these dispensers tend to separate during shipment and storage. Particularly, the tube will dislodge from the clips. This often results in a bending of the enclosed guidewire, rendering the wire unusable. If the dispenser comes apart during use, the guidewire may fall to the floor or otherwise be exposed to non-sterile conditions.
Traditional guidewire dispensers also have problems related to their dimensions and weight. For example, the clips used to hold the tubes of traditional guidewire dispensers in a coiled formation may be approximately ¼ inch thick. Thus, the clips used to keep the tubes coiled add a significant amount of thickness to the overall package of traditional guidewire dispensers. Thus, traditional guidewire dispensers require more boxes, more warehouse real estate, and more trucking than when compared to the guidewire dispenser of this disclosure. Additionally, the traditional guidewire dispensers are heavier than the guidewire dispenser of this disclosure. This is because traditional guidewire dispensers are manufactured using extruded tubing. Extruded tubing limits the thinness of the overall package of the guidewire dispenser.
As previously indicated, bent guidewires cannot be used. Guidewires are occasionally bent during the manufacturing process or during assembly of the dispenser. It is preferable to screen these defective guidewires prior to distribution, however, none of the traditional guidewire dispensers have any mechanism for preventing assembly of defective guidewires.
Moreover, current guidewire dispensers are quite limited in the length of guidewire that may be stored within it. For example, current guidewire dispensers are limited to housing a traditional length of guidewires, such as 1000 mm. Longer guidewires would require more coils, which would make traditional dispensers even larger and more unwieldy than they currently are. Alternatively, or additionally, the coils in traditional dispensers may have a tighter radius. A tighter radius, however, increases friction between the guidewire and the dispenser, which may cause problems during an operation.
Thus, there is a need for a guidewire dispenser that does not rely on clips to prevent the dispenser from uncoiling. Additionally, there is a need for a guidewire dispenser that can store much longer than traditional length guidewires without becoming unwieldy.